Since the Time of the Transformers

Book excerpt: This book examines over 4000 years of culture history of the related Nuu-chah-nulth, Ditidaht, and Makah peoples on western Vancouver Island and the Olympic Peninsula. Using data from the Toquaht Archaeological Project, McMillan challenges current ethnographic interpretations that show little or no change in these peoples’ culture. Instead, by combining historical evidence, recent archaeological data, and oral traditions he demonstrates conclusively that there were in fact extensive cultural changes and restructuring in these societies in the century following contact with Europeans. McMillan brings the reader up to modern times, identifying the major issues that face the Nuu-chah-nulth, Ditidaht, and Makah communities today.